


But Maybe Later ...

by rowx3yourships



Series: Four Families, Food Fights, and a Firetruck [8]
Category: K-pop, NCT (Band), WayV (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Developing Relationship, Dong Si Cheng | WinWin & Qian Kun are Cousins, Dong Si Cheng | WinWin-centric, Gen, Getting Together, M/M, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Polyamory, Polyamory Negotiations, Time Skips
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2020-11-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:55:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,463
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27361585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rowx3yourships/pseuds/rowx3yourships
Summary: “I’m not interested.”Sicheng frowned as the couch dipped beside him, not even turning to see who had sat down. He hadn’t even wanted to come to this party, but his cousin had insisted. Apparently Kun thought that he was lonely or something and wanted to introduce him to some of his other friends. And for some reason he thought a party hosted by one of them was a good place to do it.“I wasn’t planning on offering anything, but if that’s what you’re after-”~*~There was one person who Sicheng kept crossing paths with at the worst possible moments. Moon Taeil.The first time they had met, Sicheng had been lost on one of the first days of the semester and accidentally wandered into one of the music department’s ensemble rehearsal rooms, interrupting a sectional practice that Taeil was leading. The second time was while out having dinner and drinks with Kun and his friends, which included Taeil. Sicheng had been exhausted after constantly working on a week-long intensive project and had let Ten convince him to drink more than he should have. The third time was while simply walking across campus to meet up with Kun for lunch. Sicheng hadn’t been paying attention, and had physically ran into Taeil.
Relationships: Dong Si Cheng | WinWin/Moon Taeil, Dong Si Cheng | WinWin/Moon Taeil/Nakamoto Yuta, Dong Si Cheng | WinWin/Nakamoto Yuta, Kim Dongyoung | Doyoung/Lee Taeyong, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Moon Taeil/Nakamoto Yuta
Series: Four Families, Food Fights, and a Firetruck [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1881748
Comments: 2
Kudos: 53





	1. Yuta - One

**Author's Note:**

> so this is something that was just sorta floating around in my mind ... i figured it might be fun to show how the adults got together? ... so this is (obviously) a prequel type to the rest of the series ... hopefully you enjoy! :)

“I’m not interested.”

Sicheng frowned as the couch dipped beside him, not even turning to see who had sat down. He hadn’t even wanted to come to this party, but his cousin had insisted. Apparently Kun thought that he was lonely or something and wanted to introduce him to some of his other friends. And for some reason he thought a party hosted by one of them was a good place to do it.

“I wasn’t planning on offering anything, but if that’s what you’re after-”

He turned to be met with a wide smile and Sicheng shook his head with a glare, hoping that would make the other leave him alone. “That wasn’t what I said.” He tried to remember which of Kun’s friends this was, but honestly the names had blurred at some point. The alcohol in his hand probably hadn’t helped with that either.

The glare obviously didn’t work as the other merely smiled and continued attempting a conversation. “You’re Kun’s cousin, right? And it’s Sicheng?” Sicheng merely nodded once. “You looked bored. And even though it sounds like a line, you looked lonely.” Sicheng rolled his eyes and turned away again. “I mean it, I wasn’t trying any funny business. I just wanted to talk to you.” Sicheng turned back to see the other’s smile had dropped slightly to a more normal expression. Was he always smiling? “I’m Yuta. In case you forgot. I am horrible with new names in big groups, so I completely understand if you had forgotten.”

Sicheng frowned. “Are you always talking like this? And you can drop the smile, no need to try too much. And I’m not bored. Or lonely. I just don’t like parties or big groups of people. Especially strangers.”

The other, Yuta, nodded. “It’s okay. And you’re not the first person, or the last I’m sure, to say I talk too much.” He shrugged, his expression dropping to something that almost passed for more serious, although the hints of a smile were still on the corners of his lips. Lips which Sicheng made sure to not look directly at. “It’s an anxiety thing. At least that’s what one of my doctors said. I lose control of my words and then that’s it, I’ve annoyed over half the room.” His shrug seemed almost resigned and Sicheng frowned to himself. “Especially around new people. And people I want to impress.”

“Why do you want to impress me? I told you, I’m not interested.” Sicheng turned his frown towards Yuta. Objectively speaking, the other was attractive, especially his smile, and Sicheng didn’t care that he was another male, but he didn’t want to just rush into anything as soon as he moved here. 

“I know, I didn’t mean it like that. Well, I would gladly take you up on a date or coffee or whatever, but I wasn’t meaning it romantically. I mean, I hope I’m not offending you or anything by saying that you’re attractive and given the chance I would gladly ask you out. I know some guys seem to get defensive and attack when there are any hints of attention from another guy, but hopefully you’re not that sort? I mean, I know Kun is bi, so as you’re cousins and seem close, I hope you’re not against it? If you’re straight, that’s fine too, it can be just a compliment.”

Sicheng mentally rolled his eyes at the rambling, interrupting before Yuta could spiral too far into a rant. “I’m not. Straight, that is.” He glanced down at the cup in his hand before taking another drink, letting a small smile hide as he did so. “And you really do ramble. But again, you shouldn’t try to impress me.”

Yuta blinked before nodding. “Right, yeah, okay. I need another drink and should probably stop talking before I embarrass myself any more. It’s nice meeting you, Sicheng. Hopefully we can be friends at least?” 

He wasn’t sure why, but Sicheng found himself nodding as well. Yuta’s smile seemed to be almost unnervingly contagious. “Sure. I guess.”

If Sicheng had thought Yuta’s smile was bright before, he was corrected by the expression that his face turned into simply at the words from him. “Great, okay, uhm, yeah. I’ll leave you alone. Before I say or do something so embarrassing you decide to change your mind. You can get my number from Kun, or I can give it to you now or later tonight if you want? Just to text and talk and such.”

Sicheng fought to keep from cracking a smile at the rambling, reaching to his pocket and pulling out his phone to save the new number. He handed it to Yuta, motioning with his head. “Go ahead.” Yuta took the phone and typed in the number before handing it back to him. After saving the contact information, Sicheng pressed the call button, barely concealing a small laugh when Yuta jumped at the sound of his own phone going off. “Now you have mine too.”

Yuta nodded, the smile still on his face as there seemed to be a slight blush creeping over them as well. “Awesome, okay. I’ll just-” He motioned off towards the kitchen. “Uhm, do you need anything? I can get you another drink or such?”

“I’m fine, I still have plenty. I’m not a big drinker anyways.” Sicheng held up his own cup with a small hint of a smile, which only seemed to make Yuta smile even wider. 

“Right, okay. I guess I’ll talk to you later then? You can text or call or whatever any time. Or if you want to talk more here tonight, you can too?” Sicheng just nodded and Yuta returned the nod before turning and walking towards where Kun had mentioned the kitchen being. 

Sicheng watched him as he walked away, pulling his cup up to cover the small smile on his face. He was amusing at least. And while Sicheng wasn’t looking for anything, Yuta was interested. He shook his head, trying to clear the thought from his mind. He had just moved here. He needed to get settled first. He needed to just focus on his studies for now. A voice in the back of his head whispered,  _ but maybe later _ ?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [ i don't own any of the members mentioned / referenced - this is just fiction ]
> 
> i hope you all liked this ... let me know what you think and if you want to see any other things
> 
> next chapter will be the introduction of taeil - so look forward to that :)


	2. Taeil - One

The arts departments were all sorted into several buildings grouped together on one part of campus. That was a good thing since Sicheng could have his cousin help showing him around for the first few weeks. But it was also a bad thing, because he kept running into the same people in between classes. Sicheng had managed to somewhat befriend a few classmates as well as some of Kun’s friends. There was one person who he kept crossing paths with at the worst possible moments, though. Moon Taeil.

The first time they had met, Sicheng had been lost on one of the first days of the semester and accidentally wandered into one of the music department’s ensemble rehearsal rooms, interrupting a sectional practice that Taeil was leading. The second time was while out having dinner and drinks with Kun and his friends, which included Taeil. Sicheng had been exhausted after constantly working on a week-long intensive project and had let Ten convince him to drink more than he should have. That ended in disaster as Taeil dragged Sicheng outside for some air, where he ended up getting sick in the side alley of the club they were at. The third time was while simply walking across campus to meet up with Kun for lunch. Sicheng hadn’t been paying attention, instead texting Kun to say he was running late, and had physically ran into Taeil, knocking them both to the ground.

So of course when Sicheng had gotten a failing grade and harsh criticism of a major project that left him biting back tears, that is when he would run into Taeil again.

Sicheng had left the dance building, not bothering to change out of his rehearsal clothes and only managing to slide his feet back into a pair of shoes, before heading off in the direction of the cafe on campus that he had found had amazing tiramisu. He kept the tears at bay, muttering curses to himself under his breath. He wanted to just grab dessert and go hide in his room for the rest of the day.

When he opened the door to the cafe, Sicheng deflated even more. There was a line of people waiting and a lot of others sitting at the tables scattered around the cafe. He didn’t want to be around other people, he wanted to simply curl up with one of his favorite desserts and ignore the world. Instead, he was surrounded by a bunch of strangers while still having to fight off the urge to cry.

He was about to simply give up and just go back to his room, maybe he had some snacks or such there, when it was his turn to order. He bit his lip at the sight of one of Kun’s friends who worked at the cafe behind the counter, smiling at him. 

“Sicheng! What would you like?” 

Doyoung was nice, but Sicheng didn’t want to be around people today, even ones he somewhat knew. He took a breath and glanced over at the bakery case and he almost lost his fight with the tears. There was no more tiramisu. He turned back to Doyoung with a shrug, trying to keep from showing how upset he was before gesturing to a piece of strawberry iced cake and ordering a tea. At least he could have something.

“Of course. You usually get the tiramisu, right? I’m sorry. If I knew you were going to be coming I would have saved one for you. Taeil bought the last one a few minutes before you got here.”

Sicheng bit his lip to keep from frowning. Of course it would be him. Things always seemed to go wrong around him. Instead he just smiled at Doyoung and paid before moving to wait on his order. He tried to keep from showing how upset he was, as he was sure Doyoung would tell Kun at the first chance. He knew it was meant as a friendly gesture, but Sicheng also didn’t want to deal with Kun and his attention. 

When his order was finished, Sicheng took the cup and baggie with the cake and hurried back out of the cafe, sparing a wave to Doyoung. He was exhausted from the lessons, but he didn’t want to wait for the bus, and it wasn’t too far a walk anyways, so he simply started off towards his room. He kept his head down, ignoring anyone else and hoping to not run into anyone he knew. The last thing he wanted to do right now was to have to engage in small talk with anyone out in public. 

Deciding against waiting for the elevator, Sicheng headed for the stairs once he made it to his dorm building. He could use the exercise anyways. Especially with the cake he was going to be eating. When he emerged out onto his floor, Sicheng stopped with a frown. Taeil was standing in front of his dorm door. He took a shaky breath and walked over, trying to calm himself enough to find a way to make him leave. 

“Taeil? What are you doing here?”

Sicheng knew his voice probably sounded a bit harsh, but Taeil merely smiled and held out a container. “I brought you this. You said today was your big project. So I figured you might want to celebrate. I know you’ve been working a lot”

Glancing down at the container, Sicheng felt the tears prick his eyes again. It was a tiramisu from the cafe. He shook his head, moving to unlock the door and push himself inside, leaving the door open as an invitation. He dropped his practice bag on the floor at the end of his bed and sat down the bag and cup from the cafe on his desk before flopping on his bed, burying his face in his pillow. 

The sound of the door closing behind him didn’t make Sicheng look up, flinching slightly at the feel of someone sitting on the bed beside him. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

Sicheng turned slightly, glancing up at Taeil before burying his face back in the pillow. He really didn’t want to break down around anyone else. And why was it always Taeil who seemed to catch him at the worst possible times? It really wasn’t fair. 

The sound of Taeil’s voice singing softly made Sicheng bury his face farther into the pillow, hoping to maybe smother himself rather than break down. Of course, his body didn’t get that message and he felt the tears escaping his eyes. Gently he felt Taeil’s hand running through his hair, and he just gave up, allowing himself to let everything out. 

Sicheng wasn’t sure how long he laid there crying into his pillow while Taeil sat beside him, but eventually his breathing slowed back down to normal and he felt the rush of embarrassment. He slowly pushed himself up, keeping his eyes away from Taeil’s face. “I’m sorry. I-”

“It’s okay. Everyone needs to let their emotions out. You don’t have to apologise to me.” Taeil’s voice was soft and Sicheng felt his chest squeeze for a moment. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“I-” Sicheng took a shaky breath, keeping his eyes on the blanket. “They hated it. I failed. They asked why I wanted to major in it and suggested I switch. None of the professors even stood up for me. They didn’t have anything good to say.” He felt the tears slip from his eyes again and took a breath. “I’m not going to make it.”

He felt an arm wrap around his shoulders, pulling him close. “Of course you will. They’re probably just trying to make sure you really want it. It’s not an easy program to get into, so they want to make sure you’re going to fight for it. You’re amazing, don’t give up.” Sicheng felt the same small squeeze in his chest and he pushed it aside. “Here, dessert makes everything better.”

Taeil reached and held out the container of tiramisu and Sicheng glanced up with a small smile. “Thank you.” Taeil’s smile in return made him duck his head again. He really couldn’t afford to even think about any sort of relationship. Besides, Taeil probably thought he was a disaster. No, he needed to focus on his work and getting better so he could change the professors minds and make it into the department. A familiar voice in the back of his head whispered,  _ but maybe later _ ?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so the whole major project thing to get into the department and the disaster / comments / such - that comes from personal experience (although a different major) ... and like Taeil said - it was fine and getting into the department worked out ...
> 
> i hope you're all enjoying this ... let me know what you think 
> 
> stay safe and have a great day / night / etc! :)


End file.
